Joe diGenova, Diamond & Silk, Mark Krikorian and Dr. Sebastian Gorka joined WMAL on Monday!

Mornings on the Mall

Monday, January 29, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

5am – A/B   Conservatives are more attractive than liberals, study finds.

According to a study carried out by Rolfe Daus Peterson, a political scholar from Susquehanna University and Carl Palmar, assistant professor in politics at Illinois State University. The researchers claim that never before has the effects of physical attractiveness on politics been examined on this level and that there is “good reason to believe that individuals’ physical attractiveness may alter their political values and worldviews”. They said that their findings prove attractive people tend to lean towards the right because they have better social skills and are more popular, competent and intelligent due to the “halo effect” – an idea that bias and stereotypes influence the way people judge others.

5am – C    FLU SEASON:

• 50,000 Americans Expected To Die By The End Of Flu Season. (Daily Caller) — More than 50,000 Americans are expected to die from the influenza this season, the highest on record since an epidemic outbreak in 2014, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Experts say the 2017-2018 flu season has been unique in that the virus is not spiking in different areas at different times, but is maintaining a high rate of infection across the entirety of the U.S. at once, Bloomberg reported. More worrying is that the flu appears to be affecting older generations more than usual, with baby boomers having a higher rate of hospitalization than their grandchildren. Children still make up the largest number of infections, however. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and health officials have likened the outbreaks — which have remained steady for the past three weeks — to the epidemic of 2014-2015 that entailed 710,000 hospitalizations and 56,000 deaths.
• Schools Close In States… (WSJ) — Flu season is here, and the virus is officially “widespread” in 49 states, overwhelming hospitals and keeping thousands of students home sick from school. Although there is no official count of school closings for flu-related concerns, The 74 has tallied at least 11 districts and nine scattered individual schools across 12 states that have closed for a full day or longer because of excessive absences and concerns about the virus. Thirty children have died, and the governor of Alabama has declared a state of emergency due to the flu.

5am – D         HARRASSMENT NEWS:

• Hillary Clinton Chose to Shield a Top Adviser Accused of Harassment in 2008 (NY Times) – WASHINGTON — A senior adviser to Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign who was accused of repeatedly sexually harassing a young subordinate was kept on the campaign at Mrs. Clinton’s request, according to four people familiar with what took place. Mrs. Clinton’s campaign manager at the time recommended that she fire the adviser, Burns Strider. But Mrs. Clinton did not. Instead, Mr. Strider was docked several weeks of pay and ordered to undergo counseling, and the young woman was moved to a new job. Mr. Strider, who was Mrs. Clinton’s faith adviser, was a founder of the American Values Network and sent the candidate scripture readings every morning for months during the campaign, was hired five years later to lead an independent group that supported Mrs. Clinton’s 2016 candidacy, Correct the Record, which was created by a close Clinton ally, David Brock. He was fired after several months for workplace issues, including allegations that he harassed a young female aide, according to three people close to Correct the Record’s management.
• ‘Activist b***hes supporting b***hes’: Hillary posts bizarre ‘feminist’ video hours after it emerged she refused to fire top campaign aide accused of sexually harassing a subordinate. (Daily Mail) – Hillary Clinton gave a bizarre video shout-out to ‘activist b***hes supporting b***hes’ Friday night, just hours after responding to accusations that she protected a campaign adviser’s job after he was accused of sexual harassment. The former Secretary of State made the comments in a video posted to Twitter Friday by Huffington Post commentator Alex Mohajer.  ‘Hey everyone, I just wanted to say thanks,’ she says in the video, which is zoomed in on her face.  ‘Thank you for your feminism, for your activism, and all I can hope if you keep up the really important good work.’  Then off screen someone can be heard saying ‘activist b***hes supporting b***hes,’ to as Hillary gives a hearty laugh. She then repeats it, chuckling and saying: ‘And let me just say, this is directed to the activist b***hes supporting b***hes, so let’s go.’
• Steve Wynn will resign as RNC finance chair

5am – E         MEMO NEWS:

• Trey Gowdy: Memo Answers Questions
• Distills Thousands Of Pages Of Justice Department Docs
• Memo Outlines Allegations That FBI Used Steele Dossier To Spy On Carter Page. “If you think your viewers want to know whether or not the dossier was used in court proceedings, whether or not it was vetted before it was used, whether or not it’s ever been vetted — if you are interested in who paid for the dossier, if you are interested in Christopher Steele’s relationship with Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee, then, yes, you will want the memo to come out.”
• Gowdy: FBI’s Strzok, Page should testify to answer allegations, questions about ‘secret society’
• Marc Short: Trump Believes It Should Be Put Out
• Trump broke with Justice Dept, called for release of memo: report. Trump broke with top officials at the Justice Department and called for the release of a classified memo purported to list Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act abuses by the U.S. government, The Washington Post reported Saturday. Despite warnings from top officials at the agency, Trump reportedly told Attorney General Jeff Sessions through chief of staff John Kelly that he wants to see the memo released, believing that it will shed light on the special counsel investigation. Trump “is inclined to have that released just because it will shed light,” a senior administration official told the Post. Byron York: House Intel meets Monday and could vote on memo release. The House Intelligence Committee meets at 5 p.m. Monday in the Capitol. The meeting will give the committee its first opportunity to vote on the question of releasing the so-called “FISA abuse” memo that has captured Washington’s attention in recent days. Since the GOP holds a 13 to 9 advantage on the committee, the overwhelming likelihood is that if there is a vote, the panel will decide, along party lines, to release the memo. At that point, House rules call for the committee to await a decision by the president on whether he supports or opposes release of the memo. President Trump has made clear he supports release, so the memo could be made public quickly.

6am – A/B     HOME SCHOOLING REGULATION: Case of 13 Tortured Perris Kids Revives Home-School Regulation Debate. One California lawmaker has floated the idea of requiring annual walk-throughs of home schools by state or county officials. (NBC Los Angeles) — Just over a week after California officials found 13 malnourished siblings allegedly held captive and apparently not missed by schools because they were being home-schooled, home-schooling advocates say they are bracing for calls for stricter oversight of the practice. The advocates say they were horrified by accusations that the children’s parents kept them shackled in a filthy home in the Southern California city of Perris, and some said they support mandatory medical visits or regular academic assessments of home-schooled children. But others contend moves to step up home-schooling controls in the name of exposing child abuse earlier could lead to overregulation and intrusion that punishes parents.  One California lawmaker has floated the idea of requiring annual walk-throughs of home schools by state or county officials because of the case of the 13 siblings and “a number of legislators have expressed interest in doing something,” the HomeSchool Association of California said in a statement. “We can’t prevent evil,” the association said, “and trying to prevent it by taking away the freedom of law-abiding people is not a price our society should pay.”   Disputes over the right level of home-schooling regulation have simmered for years as the number of home-schooled children in the U.S. skyrocketed from about 15,000 in the 1970s to about 2 million today. In the absence of federal guidelines, levels of oversight vary widely by state. Alaska and Idaho have virtually no regulations, while New York and Pennsylvania families must submit annual instruction plans to the district, administer standardized tests taken by public school students statewide and provide academic progress reports. California treats home schools like other private schools and requires them to register. Private schools are subject to annual fire inspections but no agency regulates or oversees them.

6am –C          Jay-Z On Trump:

• Jay-Z slams Trump’s ‘shithole’ comment as ‘hurtful’
• On CNN’s new Van Jones show, Jay-Z says Donald Trump is a racist “superbug.”

6am – D/E     GRAMMYS HIGHLIGHTS:

• “Blessed are the sh**hole countries,” Bono yelled into a megaphone in a moment that was reportedly censored during some broadcasts.
• Hillary Clinton Makes ‘Fire and Fury’ Grammy Cameo, Donald Trump Jr. Goes On Twitter Attack
• Joy Villa made political statement with a pro-life dress on the #Grammys red carpet
• Nikki Haley ‏@nikkihaley I have always loved the Grammys but to have artists read the Fire and Fury book killed it. Don’t ruin great music with trash. Some of us love music without the politics thrown in it.
• Camila Cabello Shared Message for Dreamers: “Tonight, in this room full of music’s Dreamers, we remember that this country was BUILT BY DREAMERS, for Dreamers, chasing the American dream.”

6am – F         DACA NEWS:

• Schumer’s to-do list: Fix DACA, win the Senate, manage Trump. (Washington Post) —  Until the government shutdown last week, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer believed cutting a deal with President Trump was his best chance to protect “dreamers,” the more than 1 million undocumented immigrants who had arrived in this country as children. Now the faith has been broken, and the Democratic leader says he is charting a new path. “Unless Donald Trump realizes that the kind of deal I offered is good for him, it’s better that he stays away,” Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in an interview last week, sipping seltzer by a crackling fire in his Capitol office off the Senate floor. “If he disappears, we still, I think, have a very good chance to pass things, as long as he doesn’t mess it all up, which could very well happen.”
• Sen. Chris Murphy: “Reminder: “chain migration” is a made up term by the hardline anti-immigration crowd. Its purpose is to dehumanize immigrants. If you’re using that word, you’re declaring a side.”
• Trump: Amnesty Offer Intended to Expose Democratic Cynicism. (Breitbart/by NEIL MUNRO) — President Donald Trump carefully distanced himself from his unpopular amnesty proposal late Saturday night, saying that it is intended to show the GOP’s sincerity and the Democrats’ cynicism and obstructionism.
• DREAMERS & STATE OF THE UNION: Senators want Trump’s State of the Union to show ‘compassion’ toward Dreamers. (Politico) — President Donald Trump’s inaugural State of the Union on Tuesday could offer an opportunity for the first-term leader to unify Congress behind a plan to protect the undocumented immigrants known as Dreamers. Some senators have urged Trump to help them move toward a deal by striking a compassionate tone during his speech. “I truly, sincerely think that he has compassion and empathy, and he wants to make sure children that only know this country as their home gets security,” Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) told POLITICO. “I think for people to be able to see his compassion he has for these children would be good.”
• Democrats will fill balcony with ‘Dreamers’ for State of the Union. (Politico) — House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats will fill the balcony with so-called Dreamers and other immigrants during President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address next week as the party panned a White House attempt on Thursday to reach a deal on immigration reform. In addition to Pelosi, several Democratic senators and more than two dozen House members, including Reps. Gerry Connelly of Virginia and David Price of North Carolina, have said they’ll be accompanied by Dreamers and other immigrants at Trump’s speech.

7am – A          INTERVIEW — JOE DIGENOVA – legal analyst and former U.S. Attorney to the District of Columbia – discussed the latest on FISA, the memo release, FBI texts and Mueller investigation.

7am – B         STATE OF THE UNION PREVIEW:

• Senators want Trump’s State of the Union to show ‘compassion’ toward Dreamers. (Politico) — President Donald Trump’s inaugural State of the Union on Tuesday could offer an opportunity for the first-term leader to unify Congress behind a plan to protect the undocumented immigrants known as Dreamers. Instead, the immigration blueprint his administration laid out days before the highly anticipated address is splintering Congress in all directions, with conservatives complaining it provides amnesty for immigrants who lack legal status and Democrats recoiling from Trump’s pitch to restrict legal, family-based immigration.  Trump plans to put the weight of the bully pulpit behind his immigration proposal on Tuesday night and attempt to rally lawmakers around his plan, but some Republicans already think the president’s wish list is too broad to find agreement in Congress. An ever-widening group of senators is still trying to forge ahead with their own legislative ideas. Some senators have urged Trump to help them move toward a deal by striking a compassionate tone during his speech.
• Rising Dem star invites transgender soldier to Trump’s State of the Union in protest of transgender troops ban. (The Hill) — Rep. Joseph Kennedy (D-Mass.) has invited a transgender soldier to President Trump’s first State of the Union in protest of the administration’s attempt to ban transgender people from the military. Staff Sgt. Patricia King will be the lawmaker’s guest to Trump’s address, according to The Boston Globe.  King told the Globe that she realized she was a transgender woman while serving in the military, and soon came out to her family. Trump announced last year that he was banning transgender people from serving in the U.S. military. However, courts have halted the ban and transgender people were allowed to enlist starting Jan. 1. “I have served for almost 19 years,” King told the Globe. “And all of a sudden, it is all hanging in the balance.”
• In State of the Union, Trump to make case that America is back. (Baltimore Sun) — Seeking to move past the shadow of the Russia investigation, President Donald Trump intends to use his first State of the Union address to cite economic progress under his watch while pushing for bipartisanship with Democrats on issues such as rebuilding roads and bridges. The White House said Sunday that the president would point to a robust economy and low unemployment during his first year and the benefits of a tax overhaul during Tuesday’s address to Congress and the nation. Aides have said Trump, who stayed at the White House over the weekend as he prepared, is expected to set aside his more combative tone for one of compromise and bipartisanship.  “The president is going to talk about how America’s back,” said White House legislative director Marc Short. “The president is also going to make an appeal to Democrats … to say we need to rebuild our country. And to make an appeal that to do infrastructure, we need to do it in a bipartisan way.” Justice Ginsburg signals her intent to work for years more, miss Trump’s first State of the Union address
• Maxine Waters to give national address in response to Trump’s State of the Union. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) is slated to deliver a televised address immediately following President Trump’s State of the Union speech on Tuesday. Waters, one of Trump’s most vocal critics, will appear on “Angela Rye’s State of the Union” on BET, according to BuzzFeed News.

7am – C         TRUMP: NOT A FEMINIST:  Donald Trump tells Piers Morgan: “I wouldn’t say I’m a feminist.” (Newsweek) – President Donald Trump has dismissed the idea he would call himself a feminist, telling British journalist Piers Morgan, “I’m for everyone.” The full interview is set to air on Sunday night. Morgan has teased the airing of the interview with quotes by the president. Morgan first met Trump when taking part in The Apprentice in 2008, and has maintained a connection with him ever since. One of Morgan’s questions centered around the new conversation about gender inequality and sexual harassment in the U.K., U.S. and across the world, embodied in the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements. Trump is himself accused of sexual misconduct and according to Morgan’s post on Twitter, the president acknowledges that a feminist is not quite how he sees himself. “No, I wouldn’t say I’m a feminist. I mean, I think that would be, maybe, going too far,” Trump said, according to Morgan. “I’m for women, I’m for men, I’m for everyone.”

7am – D         INTERVIEW – DIAMOND AND SILK – YouTube sensations and President Trump supporters – discussed Jay-Z’s comments about President Trump and thoughts on Tuesday’s State of the Union.

• FIND OUT MORE INFO AT DIAMONDANDSILK.COM
• On CNN’s new Van Jones show, Jay-Z says Donald Trump is a racist “superbug.”
• Trump fires back at Jay-Z: ‘Black unemployment’ is at ‘lowest rate ever recorded.’ “Somebody please inform Jay-Z that because of my policies, Black Unemployment has just been reported to be at the LOWEST RATE EVER RECORDED!” Trump tweeted.
• Maxine Waters to give national address in response to Trump’s State of the Union.

7am – E         Chef José Andrés gets BUSTED in totally BS attack on Ivanka Trump:

• Chef José Andrés Walks Back Claim Ivanka Trump Had Him Booted From Event. (The Daily Beast) –Celebrity chef José Andrés on Sunday walked back claims Ivanka Trump had him thrown out of an elite after-party at a D.C. restaurant, saying he’s “ready to move on” after the incident prompted an uproar. Andrés, an outspoken critic and former legal foe of President Trump, had suggested on Twitter late Saturday that Ivanka Trump may have been to blame after he was barred from entering an event at Cafe Milano.  “‘Everyone’ welcome to the after-party, but I’m not allowed in? Is (sic) because Ivanka Trump told you so?” Andrés wrote, telling the owner, Franco Nuschese, “You should be ashamed of yourself.” Jorge Guajardo, Mexico’s former ambassador to China, backed up Andrés’ account, saying the chef was asked to leave “apparently because his presence made Ivanka uncomfortable.”  Ivanka Trump later denied any involvement in the debacle and Cafe Milano said Andrés simply wasn’t on the guest list.  At that point, Andrés backed down, saying he believed Trump “personally had nothing to do” with his ouster.

8am – A         INTERVIEW — MARK KRIKORIAN – Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) – discussed the latest on the DACA and immigration debate.

8am – B/C     GRAMMYS HIGHLIGHTS

8am – D         DR. SEBASTIAN GORKA – FOXNews National Security Strategist, NYT Bestseller author of “DEFEATING JIHAD” and Fmr deputy assistant to President Donald Trump – discussed the Mueller investigation and memo. Also discussed the report on John Kerry contacting Palestinians and ordering them to not work with President Trump on peace talks.

8am – E         RIP IKEA FOUNDER: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died at 91. (AP) – STOCKHOLM — Ingvar Kamprad, the IKEA founder who turned a small-scale mail order business into a global furniture empire, has died at 91, the company said Sunday. IKEA Sverige, the chain’s Swedish unit, said on Twitter that Kamprad died Saturday at his home in Smaland, Sweden. “He will be much missed and warmly remembered by his family and IKEA staff all around the world,” the company said. Kamprad’s life story is intimately linked to the company he founded at age 17 on the family farm.